yoga

(THIS POST IS FROM JUNE 22. SOMEHOW BETWEEN BEING ILL AND CHINESE INTERNET IT NEVER GOT PUBLISHED, SO ENJOY NOW!)

Yesterday, our last day in Wuhan, was all about the eating.

But first, I woke up determined to be more active and energetic and get over this sickness. I did my yoga routine, which felt AMAZING, and then managed to squeeze out 5 sets of 10 push ups. On my knees. Better than nothing. I took 3 days off from my arms/abs portion of June Goals and was eager to get back to it in even a minimal way.

And on to the FOOD!

Guilia invited us to attend a lunch that she was having with her students. She teaches English to post-high school students and it was a little end of the term celebration. The students chose the place and ordered. And ordered. There were 18 of us and something like 25 dishes!! It was obcene but a fun way to try many different things. This was one time it was perfectly fine to be a vegetarian! Tate made it his goal to try EVERYTHING and left stuffed to the gills.

Our table had a huge “lazy susan” and some sweet AstroTurf underneath. All of the dishes went in the center and we used our chopsticks to pluck things into our little personal bowls as they rolled by.

These are the dishes I sampled. The veg and the fish.

My bowl. Bring on the garlic! Note the pools of oil everything is swimming in! By the door to this restaurant there were 5 GALLON jugs of oil sitting there. Ewww……

THE MEATS! (and a few other items I didn’t try)

Yes, in that last one Guilia is holding up a whole chicken foot.

O.k, I think you get the picture but there were at least a dozen more dishes!

Lucas enjoyed the ribs!

There was so much left over, it was tragic. In China it is rude to finish dishes because it is a sign there was not enough food so for a social meal like this they purposely overorder. We encouraged the students to take leftovers home but they weren’t interested and we were spending the afternoon walking around the city. They were very generous and treated Tate, Lucas, Guilia, and I to this feast. So sweet.

We wondered around Wuhan and took a boat ride into the lake and low and behold, 5 or so hours later we were ready to eat MORE.

We went for “hot pot”. There are many versions of Chinese hot pot but the one we went to was a raw buffet of meats, veggies, tofu, and seafood and you cook it in your individual little caldran of boiling broth. This was perfect for me because I could really load up on the veg and finally not eat a cup of oil with my otherwise healthy meal.

My plate before cooking.

I piled my plate high before the cooking. It was a lot of spinach-like greens, some mushrooms, tofu, tomato, cauliflower, and a few slices of sweet potato.

I am a bona-fide control freak. Yep, you wouldn’t know it to look at me but it’s true. Underneath my super-mellow, grounded persona lays a gal who needs order and control.

Traveling challenges everyone’s sense of control. Think about how completely freaked out people get when their plane is late or canceled. Traffic leads to road rage largely because we feel so out of control of the situation.

As much as I love traveling, this last week has tested my limits and I am not sure that I have passed. Usually I can keep my control issue tendencies in a manageable state but traveling in China, which is relatively easy but no one speaks English and whole grains are unheard of, AND being sick=too much. Add to that our last week of our trip, when I really want to be soaking up every minute of being a backpacker, and I am a sobbing mess.

I have been sick for over a week which makes me feel completely out of control of my body. I try to be excellent to it, feed it fresh fruit and vegetables, rest. But then something happens, like last night when we couldn’t find a vegetable beyond a cucumber that wasn’t covered in bacon grease. And no one speaks a word of English. And my stomach hurts so bad I am doubled over, yet still hungry. So out of control.

Tate is amused/annoyed by my obsession with supermarkets, especially while traveling. I can’t pass a supermarket without strolling the aisles, reading (or attempting to read) labels, and usually leaving with nothing. My reasoning is that I never know when I am going to stumble on REAL oatmeal, or yogurt without sugar, or fruit on sale. Not that I necessarily want these items right then but I like to have a food bag stocked with healthy options. Otherwise I end up eating a bowl of white rice for dinner, feeling unsatisfied, unhealthy, and OUT OF CONTROL.

And so I breathe. And do a little yoga. And remind myself to be kind to my body and my stress. But it’s really frustrating, nonetheless.

Yesterday I thought I was feeling a bit better. I had a great yoga session followed by Pilates and then Tate and I headed out to explore Beijing. We walked from our hotel to Tiananmen Square and around the neighborhoods there. I felt good for two hours or so and then I CRASHED HARD. Everything started aching really intensely and I barely made it to the subway and up to bed. So what to do today? How do I know when I am on the edge of overdoing it? It happens really fast. I go from energetic and o.k. to feeling like I have to lay down NOW!

How do I manage gracefulfitness under these conditions? Eat as well as possible, drink loads of water, skip coffee, exercise but not much. It is an incredible practice in tuning into my body and learning to listen, rather than bull-headedly pushing on with what my mind wants (to run! to bike! to walk around the city!). And in relinquishing a bit of control.

(Sorry, I am having a lot of trouble with the computers and my card reader so no pictures!)

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Hi, I'm Faith! New? Check out I Am for my story, I Cook for recipes, and I Move for some motivation to get moving! I'd love to hear from you, e-mail me gracefulfitness@live.com
Header photo: Meredith Coe